PPM 230-620, Off-Scale Salaries for Appointments and Advancement, relates to matters subject to Academic Personnel Manual (APM) Section 620, Off-Scale Salaries for Appointments and Advancement. For reference, subsections of PPM 230-620 include citations to associated subsections of the APM; in all cases, the APM is operative where referenced.

 

PPM 230-620-0 Policy

APM 620-0

 

PPM 230-620-4 Definition

APM 620-4

 

PPM 230-620-14 Eligibility

APM 620-14

 

PPM 230-620-16 Restrictions

APM 620-16

 

PPM 230-620-18 Effect of a General Scale Adjustment on Off-Scale Salaries

APM 620-18

 

PPM 230-620-20 Terms and Conditions of Employment

 

APM 620-20              

 

PPM 230-620-24 Authority

 

No appointment, reappointment or academic review action is final until there has been an academic review and the individual with final authority has approved the action.

 

The UC San Diego Authority and Review Chart sets forth the individual(s) and/or committees responsible for review, as well as the final authority for approval.

 

PPM 230-620-80 Campus Procedures

 

The Chancellor or the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost, in consultation with the appropriate committee(s) of the divisional Academic Senate, shall develop local procedures for implementation of the off-scale policy.  Procedures shall include the criteria for appointment or advancement to a position with an off-scale salary, as well as for an appointee's continuation with an off-scale salary or return to an on-scale salary.  When an individual is placed on an off-scale salary, the appointee must be notified of this action and any limitation.

 

a. Bonus Off-Scale

 

A bonus off-scale is a temporary increase in salary which is generally awarded in recognition of outstanding achievements exceeding what is required for normal merit advancement, but insufficient to support accelerated advancement. In limited circumstances, a bonus off-scale may be awarded in conjunction with a no change action, when an appointee's achievements in the review period demonstrate both full service to the University and progress in all series criteria, but fall short of what is required for advancement.

 

Bonus off-scale proposals must address the department's standards for normal merit advancement and articulate the manner in which the appointee's achievements warrant the award of a bonus off-scale salary component.

Bonus off-scales are equivalent to half of the amount of the salary increase associated with normal advancement to the next higher step (or equivalent in series without formal steps).

b. Market Off-Scale

A market off-scale may be proposed when marketplace conditions necessitate such measures to keep UC San Diego salaries competitive.

 

1. Departments may propose a market off-scale salary component when a candidate has received a competing offer from a peer academic institution for appointment in a similar position, and/or is currently similarly employed by a peer institution.  Departments should specifically address how the competing institution compares to UC San Diego and take this information into consideration when determining the proposed value of a market off-scale salary component. Whenever possible, departments should discuss the ranking of the department of the competing institution relative to their own ranking.
   
   
2. Market considerations within a specific discipline may also justify an off-scale salary.  Supporting information may include salary data from academic institutions of comparable stature and/or discipline-based salary studies by national organizations.
   
   
3. In disciplines in which market demands consistently require the award of market off-scale salary components, departments may propose an entry-level market off-scale agreement to establish department-specific market off-scale salaries for new assistant-level appointees.  The proposal should specify whether the entry-level market off-scale applies to the entire department or only to specific fields or disciplines within the department.  Departments should include information regarding entry-level salaries in the field, such as:
   
   

·         Data provided by a professional society (or by an academic institution) of salaries at comparable academic departments

·         Salary data published in trade journals

·         Salary data from departments in other University of California campuses

·         Information received from chairs of departments of comparable ranking departments in other Universities

·         Competing offers reported by candidates for recent entry appointments in the department

Proposals are reviewed by the divisional dean and CAP prior to a final decision by the EVC.

 

Market off-scale salary components are typically maintained indefinitely and do not require rejustification following the initial award; however, when there is evidence that an academic appointee with a market off-scale salary component has failed to sustain his or her career trajectory or stature in the field, the department or subsequent reviewers may propose reduction or elimination of the market off-scale salary component.

 

When an appointee whose salary includes a market off-scale salary component advances to Above Scale, the market off-scale salary component is folded into the new above-scale salary.

 

Procedural guidelines are available in the Academic Personnel Process Manual.

 

REVISION HISTORY

 

July 1, 2017                  This policy was made effective.

 

April 20, 2018                Minor technical edits to update names and policy hyperlinks.

 

 

April 28, 2020                This policy was reviewed for gender neutral language.